Iodine status and supplementation in pregnancy: an overview of the evidence provided by meta-analyses

Iodine supplementation during pregnancy in areas with mild-moderate defciency is still a matter of debate. The present study aimed at systematically reviewing currently available evidences provided by meta-analyses with the aim to further clarify controversial aspects regarding the need of iodine supplementation in pregnancy as well as to provide guidance on clinical decision-making, even in areas with mild-moderate defciency. Medline, Embase and Cochrane search from 1969 to 2022 were performed. For the purpose of this review, only studies containing meta-analytic data were selected. A total of 7 meta-analyses were retrieved. Four meta-analyses evaluated the relationship between iodine status during pregnancy and neonatal and maternal outcomes suggesting the existence of a U-shaped correlation between iodine status and several maternal and neonatal consequences, especially if iodine status is evaluated at the beginning of pregnancy. Three meta-analyses evaluating the results of intervention trials failed to provide straightforward conclusions on the benefts of iodine supplementation in pregnant women in areas with mild-moderate iodine defciency. Although evidence coming from meta-analyses suggests a role of iodine status during pregnancy in determining maternal and child outcomes, results of meta-analyses of intervention trials are still controversial. Several factors including, degree of iodine defciency, and pooling studies conducted in areas with diferent iodine intake, may account for the lack of benefts reported by metaanalyses of intervention trials. More high-quality, randomized, controlled trials including information on timing, dose and regimen of iodine supplementation are needed to further elucidate this issue

Associations of the COVID-19 pandemic with quality of life: A cross-sectional study of older-age people with and without HIV in rural Uganda

BACKGROUND: COVID-19-related lockdowns and other public health measures may have differentially affected the quality of life (QOL) of older people with and without human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in rural Uganda. METHODS: The Quality of Life and Aging with HIV in Rural Uganda study enrolled people with and without HIV aged over 49 from October 2020 to October 2021. We collected data on COVID-19-related stressors (behavior changes, concerns, interruptions in health care, income, and food) and the participants' QOL. We used linear regression to estimate the associations between COVID-19-related stressors and QOL, adjusting for demographic characteristics, mental and physical health, and time before vs after the lockdown during the second COVID-19 wave in Uganda. Interaction between HIV and COVID-19-related stressors evaluated effect modification. RESULTS: We analyzed complete data from 562 participants. Mean age was 58 (standard deviation (SD) = 7); 265 (47%) participants were female, 386 (69%) were married, 279 (50%) had HIV, and 400 (71%) were farmers. Those making ≥5 COVID-19-related behavior changes compared to those making ≤2 had worse general QOL (estimated linear regression coefficient (b) = - 4.77; 95% confidence interval (CI) = -6.61, -2.94) and health-related QOL (b = -4.60; 95% CI = -8.69, -0.51). Having access to sufficient food after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic (b = 3.10, 95% CI = 1.54, 4.66) and being interviewed after the start of the second lockdown (b = 2.79, 95% CI = 1.30, 4.28) were associated with better general QOL. Having HIV was associated with better health-related QOL (b = 5.67, 95% CI = 2.91,8.42). HIV was not associated with, nor did it modify the association of COVID-19-related stressors with general QOL. CONCLUSIONS: In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic in an HIV-endemic, low-resource setting, there was reduced QOL among older Ugandans making multiple COVID-19 related behavioral changes. Nonetheless, good QOL during the second COVID-19 wave may suggest resilience among older Ugandans

Enhancing Governance Capacity to Ensure a Long-Term Water Supply: The Case of Windhoek, Namibia

Windhoek, Namibia, faces water stress, urbanisation, climate change and governance challenges; these issues are constraining water provision and underpinning the urgency to implement an integrated water resource management plan. Windhoek has provided access to water during droughts by relying on multiple water resources including treated wastewater. However, significant infrastructure investments are required to ensure continued water security. Through applying the City Blueprint Approach—an indicator assessment aiming to provide a holistic understanding of water management and governance—we substantiate how Namibia can enhance the capacity to implement legislation, with long-term focus and collaboration with experts and stakeholders

Enhancing Governance Capacity to Ensure a Long-Term Water Supply: The Case of Windhoek, Namibia

Windhoek, Namibia, faces water stress, urbanisation, climate change and governance challenges; these issues are constraining water provision and underpinning the urgency to implement an integrated water resource management plan. Windhoek has provided access to water during droughts by relying on multiple water resources including treated wastewater. However, significant infrastructure investments are required to ensure continued water security. Through applying the City Blueprint Approach—an indicator assessment aiming to provide a holistic understanding of water management and governance—we substantiate how Namibia can enhance the capacity to implement legislation, with long-term focus and collaboration with experts and stakeholders

Enhancing Governance Capacity to Ensure a Long-Term Water Supply: The Case of Windhoek, Namibia

Windhoek, Namibia, faces water stress, urbanisation, climate change and governance challenges; these issues are constraining water provision and underpinning the urgency to implement an integrated water resource management plan. Windhoek has provided access to water during droughts by relying on multiple water resources including treated wastewater. However, significant infrastructure investments are required to ensure continued water security. Through applying the City Blueprint Approach—an indicator assessment aiming to provide a holistic understanding of water management and governance—we substantiate how Namibia can enhance the capacity to implement legislation, with long-term focus and collaboration with experts and stakeholders

Isolation of Urinary Exosomal miRNAs: Comparative analysis of different methods

Exosomes can be detected in urine and are released from every segment of the nephron. Urinary exosomes harbor unique subset of proteins, reflecting their cellular source, and constitutively contain RNA. The presence of large amounts of small RNAs in exosomes suggests that exosomes may contain specific microRNAs that provide valuable information as noninvasive clinical biomarkers in both diagnostic and prognostic areas for patients with renal pathologies [1]. We report a comparative analysis of different methods for the isolation of urinary exosomes and the analysis of their microRNA content. We applied and compared several methodologies, including nanomembrane concentrators and Exoquick-TCTM precipitation reagent [2] for exosome purification; TRI reagent and various commercial kits (Qiagen, Ambion, miRcury and Seramir) for exosomal RNAs extraction. Purified RNA was subjected to standard validation such as nanodrop quantification, ribo-pico green measurements and bioanalyser analysis. Moreover all the samples were checked for microRNAs/mRNA/small RNAs content by RT-qPCR specific assays. Based on these results we selected the most reliable and convenient method for microRNAs extraction from urinary exosomes. The selection of the appropriate exosomal miRNA isolation method was dependent on the validation results in terms of RNA yield and the absence of contaminants